The first intercity phone call occurred in 1877 in Philly (and more local telephone firsts)

Gray, a rival of Alexander Graham Bell’s, called New York City from the Western Union Telegraph Company at 10th and Chestnut Streets, Hidden City reported in a feature about Philly’s rich telephone history.In the Western Union building, pianist and music instructor Frederick Boscovitz played a piano that was heard by an audience at New York’s Steinway Hall.Subsequent concerts with other instruments and singers were also performed by players in Philadelphia and transmitted to New York.b Alexander Graham Bell, Elisha Gray -30- Company Culture | philly Flying cars, hoverboards and an Atari for every home: What we thought the future would look like in the 2020s Software Development | philly This microprocessor chip shaped computer history right from the Philly ‘burbs Civic News | philly What could save the John Coltrane House in Strawberry Mansion?

The first intercity phone call occurred in 1877 in Center City.And the phone call wasn’t just transmitting words.